1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to sunbathing devices and more particularly to sunbathing devices which are adapted for affording an individual protection from the rays of the sun.
2. Background of the Invention
For years people have enjoyed the benefits of sunbathing in order for improving their physical appearance and also for promoting social interaction and general relaxation. However, it has become known that prolonged exposure to the sun can lead to numerous health related problems ranging from headaches, dry skin or sun bum to possibly skin cancer or cataracts in some circumstances. In particular, in recent years it has become known that excessive natural exposure to short-wave ultra-violet light (UV-B; 290-320 nm) is directly linked to skin cancer, including melanoma and other related disorders. This danger from UV-B light has been greatly escalated recently due to unexpected ozone decay occurring in the upper atmosphere from a build-up of manmade chemicals, such as chlorofluoricarbons and bromines. The ozone layer is a naturally occurring belt of gases approximately 10 to 30 miles high which operates to block the suns potentially harmful ultraviolet rays.
Other light extends from the UV-B region into long-wave ultraviolet light (UV-A;320-400 nm), visible or white light (400-700 nm) and finally infra-red light (ranging from 700-15,000 nm). UV-A light has been considered to be harmless at natural intensities and operates to promote skin tanning. Visible and infra-red light have also been considered safe at natural intensities, although excessive exposure has been found to lead to dehydration and heat or sun stroke in some circumstances, or possibly skin cancer from excessive visible light exposure.
Many different types of devices have been developed in order to provide protection from the harmful effects of the sun's rays. These range from devices such as umbrellas which operate to totally prevent the passage of the sun's rays to screen devices which are adapted to falter specific wavelengths of the sun's light.
One problem which has been observed is that such prior art devices do not allow the user of the device to alter the amount or particular wavelengths of light according to the needs of that particular user. For instance, some individuals who are sensitive to the sun although still desire to develop a sun tan may require that most of the sun's rays should be shielded. However, these same individuals during cloudy weather or other individuals who are not sun sensitive may desire to allow the passage of additional light rays within the visible and infra-red light regions, for example, while still shielding the harmful UV-B light. In other instances, however, the same individuals may choose to block all of the sun's rays in order to prevent any exposure to the sun.
Because of these and other shortcomings associated with sun bathing and protection devices presently employed, there now exists a need for a simple and portable device which is capable of filtering any desired wavelength or wavelengths of light depending on the needs of the user.